美国社会与文化教案.doc

-American Society & Culture - Northeast Agricultural University-Chapter One Out of the PastI. Teaching Objectives:1. Understand a series of triggering events that led to the birth of the United States of America 2. Know the democratization process of the new Republic3. Be aware of the rapid development of industrialization and urbanization4. Learn the way the United States shifted from non-engagement to engagement in world affairs, especially in the two world wars and the cold war5. Make sense of the social reform movements of the 1960sII. The Points to Be Highlighted: 1. The birth and growth of a New Nation 2. The wars and the impactIII. Time Allotment: 4 periodsIV. Teaching Approaches and Facilities Approaches: 1. Discussion 2. Task-based approach 3. Communicative approach Facilities: video clip; media classroom; V. General introduction of the course:Course Description: This is a lecture- and reading-based course designed to examine the main elements of American culture and society. The main skills required for this class are reading comprehension, listening comprehension, and note-taking. Students will also be expected to participate in class discussions of the reading topics.The goal of this course: to outline the general worldview of Americans by exploring relevant topics. In addition to standard topics such as geography, history and political structure, lectures will also focus on traditional values, ethnic diversity and assimilation, and modern social problems of American society. Students will have a weekly reading assignment and are expected to come to class ready to discuss the content of the readings. The lectures will clarify and expand upon the reading material, and students are expected to take careful notes during each lecture. In addition, selected films relating to various reading assignments will help to illustrate relevant topics and concepts concerning contemporary American life. Students are responsible for viewing the films, as well as relating the themes to class content. As society cannot be defined without mentioning people, great attention will be paid to the most common aspects of life in America. Although such topics as geography and history are important to the shaping of any society, the most time will be spent discussing the society as it exists today, how citizens exist within the society, and how they relate to the rest of the world. Course Objectives: At the end of the term, students will be able to: 1) Name and describe the distinguishing features of American society and culture 2) Describe how geography and history have helped shape these features 3) Summarize common characteristics, daily lives, and social habits of American citizens 4) Discuss the social problems facing America, placing emphasis on causes and possible solutions VI. Teaching Procedures:1. Lead-in Questions: Why do you choose this course and what do you expect to learn? What do you know about America and Americans? OR People are naturally curious about each other, and when they meet people from different countries, they want to know about them: What is life like in their country? What kind of houses do they live in? What kind of food do they eat? What are their customs? If we visit their country, we can observe the people and how they live, and we can answer some of these questions. But the most interesting questions are often the hardest to answer: What do the people believe in? What do they value most in life? What motivates them? Why do they behave the way they do? 2. Task design /Group discussion: Before you read the chapter, think about what you know about the United States. Provide the students with some new terms and help them to translate. 3. Details of the chapter:4. Practical exercises:(1)Do you know about the birth and growth of our country?(2)What different ethnic groups are there in your country? Where do they live? How are they different from the majority of people in your country: language? clothing? food? music? customs? What effect do different ethnic groups have on a country? (3)What is your countrys policy on immigration? Are there quotas for how many people are allowed to come from each country? Can immigrants become citizens? Are there guest workers (people who work there temporarily) in your country? How do people in your country feel about foreigners? (4)Do you think it is possible to describe the average person in your country? Do you think people all over the world are basically the same or basically very different? How are Americans different form people in your country? VII. Assignments: Pre-read the first part of the given materials- American Identity, and get prepared for the next lesson. Chapter Two The American IdentityI. Teaching Objectives:1. Distinguish Anglo-Americans from other white ethnic Americans2. Understand the hard struggle of African Americans to win their freedom and equal rights3. Know the reasons for the rapid growth of Latinos population in the U.S.4. Be aware of the discrimination Chinese Americans have encountered and are still encountering in the U.S.5. Learn the tragic experiences of Native Americans after the arrival of EuropeansII. The Points to Be Highlighted: 1. White Ethnic Americans2. African Americans3. Asian Americans4. Native AmericansIII. Time Allotment: 2 periodsIV. Teaching Approaches and Facilities Approaches: 1. Discussion 2. Task-based approach 3. Communicative approach Facilities: video clip; media classroom; V. Teaching Procedures:1. Lead-in Questions: Why the United States has been called “a nation of immigrants”? There are two good reasons for this. First, the country was settled, built, and developed by generations of immigrants and their children. Secondly, even today America continues to take in more immigrants than any other country in the world. It is not surprising, therefore, that the United States is counted among the most heterogeneous societies in the world. Many different cultural traditions, ethnic customs, national origins, racial groups, and religious affiliations combine to make up “the new men, called Americans.”2. Task design /Group discussion: Before you read the chapter, think about what you know about the ethnics of the United Stats. Provide the students with some new terms and help them to translate. 3. Details of the chapter: 4. Practical exercises :Examine the most discriminatory acts against Asian Americans by white Americans during the 19th and 20th centuries, and discuss their impact on the first- and second-generation Asian Americans.VI. Assignments: Pre-read the first part of the given materials, Religion in American, and get prepared for the next lesson. Chapter Three Religion in AmericaI. Teaching Objectives:1. Understand the importance of religious belief in American life2. Know the principle of separation of church and state and its implications3. Appreciate the pervasive influence of religion in American society4. Be informed of the crucial role civil religion plays in shaping American minds5. Be aware of the intervening power of religious organizations in the policy-making processII. The Points to Be Highlighted: 1. History of religions in America2. Church, States and Politics3. Popular religion4. Civil religionIII. Time Allotment: 2 periodsIV. Teaching Approaches and Facilities Approaches: 1. Discussion 2. Task-based approach 3. Communicative approach Facilities: video clip; media classroom; V. Teaching Procedures:1. Lead-in Questions: 1) Why the United States is probably the most religious country in the developed countries? 2) Why does religion play a crucial role in the shaping of American culture?2. Task design /Group discussion: Before you read the chapter, think about what you know about the belief of the United Stats. Provide the students with more information about it and help them to understand. 3. Details of the chapter: 4. Practical exercises :(1)Discuss the relationship between religion and culture in the United States, noting in particular the core Christian values as expressed in American culture.(2)How did the descendents of the Puritans try to fulfill the mission both in the United States and around the world?(3)Discuss the importance of the principle of separation of church and state derived partly from Protestants persecution in Europe and partly from their experience in the New World.(4)Discuss the ways civil religion helps forge and indeed cement national consensus among Americans.VI. Assignments: Pre-read the first part of the given materials, American Beliefs, and get prepared for the next lesson. Chapter Four American BeliefsI. Teaching Objectives:1. Understand the fundamental beliefs of American people2. Distinguish the nuanced differences between American-born beliefs and immigrant beliefs3. Know the core beliefs that grew out of the frontier experience4. Learn the close links between religious and moral beliefs5. Appreciate the easy political and social beliefs relate and interact to each otherII. The Points to Be Highlighted: 1. Primary beliefs of American culture2. Immigrant beliefs3. Social beliefs4. Religious and moral beliefs5. Beliefs on human natureIII. Time Allotment: 2 periodsIV. Teaching Approaches and Facilities Approaches: 1. Discussion 2. Task-based approach 3. Communicative approach Facilities: video clip; media classroom; V. Teaching Procedures:1. Lead-in Questions: Discuss the understanding of Beliefs. 2. Task design /Group discussion: Before you read the chapter, think about what you know about the beliefs of the United Stats. Provide the students with some new terms and help them to understand. 3. Details of the chapter:4. Practical exercises :(1)Do you know about the religions of America and our country?(2)How do the religions affect on the country?(3)Discuss the ways civil religion helps forge and indeed cement national consensus among American.VI. Assignments: Pre-read the first part of the given materials, American Values and Assumption, and get prepared for the next lesson. Chapter Five American Values and AssumptionsI. Teaching Objectives:1. Understand the importance of individualism in American core values2. Know the yardstick by which Americans assess and measure achievements3. Be aware of the tension between liberty and equality4. Learn the ways Americans behave and interact to each other5. Be aware of the contradictions inherent in a pair of two core values of Americans: individualism and cooperationII. The Points to Be Highlighted: 1. Individualism and privacy2. Equality3. Directness and assertiveness4. Cooperation and “fair Play”III. Time Allotment: 2 periodsIV. Teaching Approaches and Facilities Approaches: 1. Discussion 2. Task-based approach 3. Communicative approach Facilities: video clip; media classroom; V. Teaching Procedures:1. Lead-in Questions: Ask Ss to discuss their understanding of “Values”. As people grow up, they learn certain values and assumptions from their parents, relatives, teachers, books, newspapers, and television programs. “Values” are ideas about what is right and wrong, desirable and undesirable, normal and abnormal, and proper and improper. In any society, people who grow up in any particular culture share exactly the same values and assumptions to exactly the same extent.2. Task design /Group discussion:Before you read the chapter, think about what you know about the differences on Values between the United Stats and China. Provide the students with some new terms and help them to translate. 3. Details of the chapter:4. Practical exercises :(1)Explain the Values of our Chinese people.(2)How does the Values influence on the country?(3)Discuss the possible reasons for Americans stress on informality in communication, behavior and interpersonal relationship.VI. Assignments: Pre-read the first part of the given materials, Cultural Regions in America, and get prepared for the next lesson. Chapter Six Cultural Regions in AmericaI. Teaching Objectives:1. Know the contributions of New England to the development of American culture2. Understand the uniqueness of the Southern culture3. Make sense of average Americans in the context of the Midwestern culture4. Be aware of the cultural legacy of the Far West5. Appreciate the diversity of regional cultures II. The Points to Be Highlighted: 1. New England2. The South3. The Midland4. The Midwest5. The Far WestIII. Time Allotment: 4 periodsIV. Teaching Approaches and Facilities Approaches: 1. Discussion 2. Task-based approach 3. Communicative approach Facilities: video clip; media classroom; V. Teaching Procedures:1. Lead-in Questions: Which four major regions is the United States commonly divided into?The four major regions are: Northeast, South, Midwest, and West.2. Task design /Group discussion:Before you read the chapter, talk about New England and the culture of the United States. Provide the students with some new terms and help them to translate. 3. Details of the chapter:4. Practical exercises :(1)Examine some of the most important contributions New England has made to the American Mind in such areas as democracy, education, religion, morality, and work ethics.(2)Trace the origin of the diversity in the regions history and explain how such a diverse and complex society has helped promote cultural pluralism in the United States, rather than produce resentment or animosity among all different ethnic and cultural groups.(3)Examine the historical process in which all these values grew and developed in the Midwest.VI. Assignments: Pre-read the first part of the given materials, Education in America, and get prepared for the next lesson. Chapter Seven Education in AmericaI. Teaching Objectives:1. Know the evolutionary process of education in America2. Understand the functions of education in different periods3. Be aware of the birth of public education in America4. Make sense of the important ideas behind the establishment of modern colleges and universities5. Be informed of the characteristics of American education at all levelsII. The Points to Be Highlighted: 1. Initial efforts in promoting education2. the birth of public schools3. the emergence of the academies4. progressivism in educationIII. Time Allotment: 4 periodsIV. Teaching Approaches and Facilities Approaches: 1. Discussion 2. Task-based approach 3. Communicative approach Facilities: video clip; media classroom; V. Teaching Procedures:1. Lead-in Questions: Ask Ss to discuss their understanding of American education.As is the case in any other country in the world, education in the United States does not merely function as a vehicle to pass on knowledge to children, it also serves the purpose of instilling cultural values in the plastic minds of the young. Viewed in this light, American educational system can be best understood as a kind of social institution that reflects the basic beliefs and fundamental principles of the nation, rather than simple a kind of skill-training place where students are prepared to get a job.2. Task design /Group discussion:Before you read the chapter, think about what you know about the differences on the education between the United Stats and China. Provide the students with some new terms and help them to translate. 3. Details of the chapter:4. Practical exercises :(1)Discuss the importance of education in New England in relation to Puritans understanding of individual responsibility for his/her redemption.(2)Discuss the important role the academies played in making education both more practical and more accessible.(3)Trace the development of American higher education from colonial period to modern times and discuss their contributions to the growth of the country.VI. Assignments: Pre-read the first part of the given materials, The American Family, and get prepared for the next lesson. Chapter Eight The American FamilyI. Teaching Objectives:1. Know the differences between traditional and modern American families2. Be aware of American family values3. Be informed of the changes the American family has gone through from colonial period to modern times4. Understand the characteristics of contemporary American family structure5. Distinguish between upper-and middle-class families and working-class familiesII. The Points to Be Highlighted: 1. European origins of the American family2. Separate spheres and the birth of modern American family 3. The contemporary American family4. Upper, middle, and working-class familiesIII. Time Allotment: 1 periodIV. Teaching Approaches and Facilities Approaches: 1. Discussion 2. Task-based approach 3. Communicative approach Facilities: video clip; media classroom; V. Teaching Procedures:1. Lead-in Questions: Like many of other aspects of American life, families are changing. Talk about it.2. Task design /Group discussion:Before you read the chapter, say something about American family, and discuss the differences between Chinese family and American. Provide the students with some new terms and help them to translate. 3. Details of the chapter:4. Practical exercises :Examine the changes the American family has experienced in recent years and analyze the causes of all these changes.VI. Assignments: Pre-read the first part of the given materials, Mass Media, and get prepared for the next lesson. Chapter Nine Mass MediaI. Teaching Objectives:1. Be informed of the different forms of mass media2. Understand the role mass media p